CURRENT AFFAIRS
17 MARCH 2020
BY:GAZAL BHATNAGAR,VIDHYARTHI DARPAN
NATIONAL AFFAIRS:
1) Ranjan Gogoi, former Indian chief justice nominated by the president for Rajya Sabha:
India’s President Ramnath Kovind appointed India’s former chief justice Ranjan Gogoi to Rajya Sabha on 16 March 2020.
2) PM Modi proposed the establishment of the SAARC nation’s COVID 19 emergency fund during the New Delhi video conference, where India offered US$ 10 million:
During the video conference with SAARC leaders, Prime Minister Narendra Modi suggested formulating a shared strategy to tackle COVID-19(Coronavirus) in the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) area.
3) Flipkart is partnering with Aegon life insurance to sell life insurance plans for easy access:
Flipkart, an e-commerce company based with Aegon Life Insurance, collaborated on March 16, 2020 to offer customized insurance products to consumers looking for instant digital plans with a guaranteed amount of up to Rs 10 lakh.
4) India forbids citizens entry from the UK, EU due to corona virus:
India decided on March 16, 2020 to forbid the entry of citizens from the European Union and the United Kingdom before the end of March 2020 because of the increasing threats of Corona Virus.
5) OIL have concluded an agreement with Numaligarh Refinery on Crude Oil:
On March 15, 2020, Oil India Limited (OIL), the nation’s second-oil explorer, consented to an arrangement called the Crude Oil Sales Agreement (COSA) with Numaligarh Refinery to sell and buy unrefined oil in Narengi, Guwahati.
6) India is giving 107.01 million Nepalese rupees to Nepal for three new schools:
India will give 107.01 million Nepali rupees to build three new school structures to be built in the locale of Darchula, Dhanusha and Kapilvastu. The MoU was signed between the bodies of India, Nepal and related locale in Kathmandu on 16 March 2020.
7) Raj Kumar Singh initiated a new website of ‘Ministry of New and Renewable Energy’:
The Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Electricity, New and Renewable Energy and State Minister for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship Raj Kumar (R K) Singh propelled another Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) site on 16 March 2020.
8) A book entitled “An Extraordinary Life: A Manohar Parrikar Biography” to be published in April 2020:
Sadguru Patil and Mayabhushan Nagvenkar, senior journalists, wrote a book entitled “An Extraordinary Life: A Biography of Manohar Parrikar,” published by Penguin Random House India and scheduled for publication in April 2020.
9) National Day of Vaccination 2020 was celebrated on 16 March:
Consistently, on 16 March 2020, the National Vaccination Day is seen where this day is praised across India to assemble mindfulness and significance of having timely vaccination.
WORLD AFFAIRS:
1) First testing of the COVID-19 vaccine starts in the US:
On March 16, 2020, the United States of America initiated the first clinical study testing the COVID-19 vaccine, where the US National Institute of Health will recruit 45 healthy adult volunteers between the ages of 18 and 55 to test the vaccine for duration of 6 weeks.
SPORTS AFFAIRS:
1) 112nd release of All England Open 2020 at Birmingham Arena, England:
2020 All England Open (formally known as the Yonex All England Open Badminton Championships 2020) was the 112th release of the most established badminton competition mutually composed by the Badminton England and the Badminton World Federation (BWF) from 11 to 15 March 2020 at Arena Birmingham, Birmingham, England.
2) Sharath kamal, a table tennis champion, wins the singles title for men at the ITTF challenger plus Oman Open 2020 held in Muscat:
On March 15, 2020, Achanta Sharath Kamal (37), a Tamil Nadu (TN) proficient table tennis player, finished the title of 10 years’ wait by winning the ITTF (International Table Tennis Federation) Challenger Plus Oman Singles title 2020 for men by beating Portugal’s top seed Marcos Freitas with 4-2 scores in the final played at the Sultan Qaboos Sports Complex in Muscat, Oman.
CURRENT AFFAIRS
18 MARCH 2020
BY:GAZAL BHATNAGAR,VIDHYARTHI DARPAN
NATIONAL AFFAIRS:
1) After FOC Tejas successfully finished first flight:
Tejas is part of the Indian Air Force’s 45th Squadron ‘ Flying Dragons’ that recently completed its first test flight following Final Operational Clearance on March 17, 2020.
2) At the Institute of Nano Science Starch-based “Hemostat” developed to avoid blood loss:
The starch-based’ hemostat’ is designed to avoid rapid blood loss during injuries, as it physically removes excess fluid and concentrates the blood’s natural coagulation factors. The product has increased absorption potential and better absorption, is cheap and biodegradable. Starch based’ Hemostat’ was established by scientists at the INST (Institute of Nano Science and Technology), which works under the Department of Science & Technology.
3) Ministry of Culture founded an institute to promote the research, art, and culture of Buddhism:
CIHCS (Central Institute of Himalayan Culture Studies) main goal is to conserve ancient Buddhist manuscripts, to encourage study on various aspects of Buddhism, and to digitize ancient Buddhist texts in Asian languages like Pali, Sanskrit, and Chinese etc.
4) Supreme Court grants Permanent commission to women in Indian Navy:
Justice DY Chandrachud instructed the Center to concede a permanent commission to serving female officers in the Navy within three months with increments. A permanent commission allows an officer to serve in the Navy until he / she retires, in contrast to the current 10-year Short Service Commission (SSC), which can be expanded by four more years to a total of 14. The Supreme Court said women work with a similar proficiency as male officials and sexism ought not to happen.
5) ECI nominates New Chief Electoral Officer Hirdesh Kumar for Jammu and Kashmir:
On March 16, 2020, Hirdesh Kumar, a 1999 group IAS (Indian Administrative Service) official who currently serves as Commissioner Secretary in J&K’s Department of School Education, is named by India’s Election Commission as the New Chief Electoral Officer of Jammu and Kashmir.
6) M Gopal Reddy selected for chief secretary post at Madhya Pradesh:
On 17 March 2020, the administration of Madhya Pradesh (MP) delegated M Gopal Reddy to replace Sudhi Ranjan Mohanty with impact from 1 April 2020 as Chief Secretary of State.
7) Ravinder Singh Dhillon has been named by Power Finance Corporation as CMD:
On 16 March 2020, the Cabinet Selection Committee designated Ravinder Singh Dhillon as Chairman and Managing Director of Power Finance Corporation (PFC) with impact from 1 June 2020.
8) Amin village of Haryana renamed as Abhimanyupur:
On March 16, 2020, the Central Government affirmed the renaming of the Amin town as Abhimanyupur in Haryana region of Kurukshetra, as requested by the State Government where the decision was taken by the Union Home Ministry subsequent to getting consent from a couple of central associations.
9) Draft National Rare Disease Strategy, available on the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare website:
The draft National Policy on Rare Diseases was published on March 17, 2020 on the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare site where the draft was opened for remarks from states and domains of the Union and furthermore from the overall population. The Ministry provided one-time financial assistance of Rs 15 lakhs from Rashtriya Arogya Nidhi families afflicted by rare diseases and living on the Below Poverty line.
WORLD AFFAIRS:
1) Trump is the presumptive presidential candidate for the Republican Party:
US President Donald Trump has become the presumptive presidential candidate of the Republican Party after he was given ample numbers by his home state of Florida to pass the threshold of the pledged delegates.
SPORTS AFFAIRS:
1) ATK FC captured the ISL trophy by beating Chennaiyin FC for the third time:
ATK FC (Football Club) captured the ISL (Indian Super League) trophy for the third time on March 17, 2020, following a 3-1 victory over Chennaiyin FC in the final match at Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, Margao, Goa.
